Four distinguished nationals of the Caribbean Community will be accorded the highest regional award in the Order of the Caribbean Community (OCC) at the opening of the X1X Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community at the National Cultural Centre, Castries, Saint Lucia. The Meeting takes place from 30 June -4 July.
The award will be conferred on former Prime Minister and now President of Trinidad and Tobago, His Excellency Arthur Napoleon Raymond Robinson; former Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Vere Cornwall Bird (snr); Jamaican academic and historian, Sir Phillip Manderson Sherlock and Barbadian cricket great, Sir Garfield St. Auburn Sobers. In conferring the OCC award,, the recipients are being saluted for their contribution to the development of the Caribbean Region.
The Insignia for the Order of the Caribbean Community was designed by Mr. Standhope Williams of Guyana in the form of the sun, bursting forth in all its golden splendor. This brilliant sun also represents the illustrious and distinguished nature of the persons who will receive this high honour. The four prominent points, forming parts of the rays of the sun represent the four cardinal points.
The centre-piece of this insignia bears the logo of the Caribbean Community – interlocking “C”s – with the broken chain effect of this logo representing the freedom of the geographic chain of countries linked together by their common history, culture and aspirations and their integration movement. The outer circle of the sun stands for “O” in the initials thus forming OCC – Order of the Caribbean Community.
This insignia bears two significant features relating to the nature of the Caribbean Community. The first is the RAINBOW. This feature, which is a common occurrence in the tropical climate of the Caribbean, is used symbolically to reflect the multiplicity of races of people present in the Caribbean Region. The Rainbow also represents the natural beauty and colourful nature of the Region, as exemplified through tourism and the celebrations of Carnival and other festivals in the various Member States. The Rainbow appears above the upper “C” of the logo.
The second feature consists of two wavy bands – the first is narrow and appears immediately below the lower “C”. It represents the Caribbean Sea in which The Bahamas and the Less Developed Countries (LDCs) of the Caribbean Community are found, and which washes the shores of the mainland territory of Belize. The second band is wide and represents the Atlantic Ocean which washes the shores of the mainland territory of Guyana.
The words Order of the Caribbean Community are embossed on the outer circle of the sun, and for distinction, are inscribed in old English (Gothic) hand. The Rainbow, the logo of CARICOM, and two wavy bands, are all embossed.
Profiles of the recipients attached below:
Arthur Napoleon Raymond Robinson
Vere Cornwall Bird
Philip Manderson Sherlock
Garfield St. Auburn Sobers
ARTHUR NAPOLEON RAYMOND ROBINSON
Arthur Napoleon Raymond Robinson, a national of Trinidad and Tobago, was born in the island of Tobago and received his early education at Bishop’s High School. Graduate and post graduate honors soon followed and these were acquired at the University of London and St. John’s College at Oxford.
On his return to Trinidad and Tobago, ANR Robinson brought with him a zeal – shared by so many intellectuals of his time – for changing the social and economic conditions of his people and a desire to redress the negative effects of an outdated colonial status as a form of government. In practical terms, he recognised an urgent necessity for creating a strong political force, supported by the collective will of the people, that would provide leadership and guidance in their struggle for self-determination. He became a founder member and was deputy political leader of the People’s National Movement, the Party which was to lead the people of Trinidad and Tobago to Independence in 1962.
For another 40 years, Mr. Robinson remained a leading figure in the political life of his country. Between 1956 and 1970, he served in the hierarchy of the PNM and was at various times Minister of Finance, External Affairs and West Indian Affairs.. From 1971 to 1985, he was the leader of the Democratic Action Congress and from 1986 to 1997 leader of the NAR – National Alliance for Reconstruction. As head of the party he was elected Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago from 1986-1991. During his tenure, the Parliament was attacked by an armed group , and he and other members of Parliament were held hostage.
During these years in the political limelight, he has suffered the usual setbacks not uncommon in the life of a high-profile politician. But he served these years with distinction, with charisma and with a clear vision of the future of his country and of the Caribbean Community. It was not surprising therefore that as a cap to this brilliant political career in service of the people of Trinidad and Tobago, he was elected President in 1997.
As a young man lighting the path towards internal self government and political independence for Trinidad and Tobago under the People’s National Movement, Arthur Napoleon Raymond Robinson did not limit his political interests to the confines of the country of this birth. He shared the vision of those great West Indians of the pre-independence period who rose above political insularity and conceived of a Caribbean Community united in a common struggle for political and economic independence. As an expression of this vision, he was an advocate of a Federated West Indies and between 1958 and 1960 was Parliamentary Representative for Tobago in the Federal Parliament.
Mr. Robinson’s vision and his deeper understanding of the Region’s social, political and economic realities also led him to recognise and to advocate that political gains were only one step in the creation of a truly independent and sovereign state; and that to preserve such independence, there was the clear imperative for the states of the Region to come together, to act together and to cooperate in making themselves a stronger and viable Caribbean Community.
He was untiring in his efforts in this regard. A selection of his articles and speeches for the period 1960 to 1986 has been published under the title of “Caribbean Man” – a choice that is aptly descriptive of the author himself. Many will recall his perceptive address at the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community held in Grenada in 1989 in which, with great incisiveness born of conviction, experience and not a little hope, he analysed the current Caribbean situation and called for an urgent deepening of the CARICOM integration process as the best hope for our survival as a much stronger and more viable Community.
The Grand Anse Declaration for the Advancement of the Integration Movement, issued at the conclusion of that historic Conference, is regarded by many observers as critical to the determination of whether the Community was to fade away or proceed with renewed vigour and a sense of purpose towards the 21st Century. That we are still around to celebrate an anniversary today is due in large measure to President Robinson’s dynamism, his intellectualism and his depth of understanding and appreciation of the Caribbean person, as well as his role in making Trinidad and Tobago a deep and committed member of the regional integration movement.
Vere Cornwall Bird, a National Hero of Antigua and Barbuda was born on 7 December 1910. His contribution to the development of his country of birth and to the wider community of which Antigua and Barbuda is today such an integral part, spans well over 50 years of continuous and dedicated service.
Like so many of the great leaders of his time , Sir Alexander Bustamante, Norman Manley, Sir Grantley Adams and Robert Bradshaw to name a few – Vere Cornwall Bird’s political career was fashioned and nurtured in the struggle of the working people of his country for better conditions and ultimately for greater self-respect through political action.
In 1940, Vere Cornwall Bird became a founder member of the Antigua Trades and Labour Union. He was elected the Union’s President in 1943 and remained its leader and mentor until 1973. During that period, the AT&LU, under his dynamic leadership, secured recognition as the bargaining agent for the workers and lists among its many achievements the abolition of child labour; the promotion of the interests of small farmers through the establishment of a Peasant Development Office; better working conditions including holidays with pay; and retirement benefits in the form of gratuities and pensions.
VC Bird’s concern for workers’ rights led inevitably to his active participation in the constitutional reform process that would lead to self-determination through universal adult suffrage, internal self government, and eventually to Independence. In 1946, with widespread support from among the working people, Mr. Bird was elected to the Antigua Legislative Council and campaigned relentlessly for the empowerment of the people through universal adult suffrage. This was granted in 1951.
In 1961, when the Ministerial system of government was introduced, Mr. Bird became Antigua’s first Chief Minister and in 1967 became Premier of Antigua when it advanced to become a State in Association with Britain. In 1981, he capped this remarkable career when he became the first Prime Minister of an independent Antigua and Barbuda – a career during which he held the position of Head of Government through every stage of the constitutional progress of Antigua and Barbuda.
VC Bird was also a committed regionalist. The Union of which he was President became a founder member of the Caribbean Congress of Labour and encouraged solidarity among the member Unions, convinced that the people of the Caribbean shared a common call for improved conditions and economic empowerment. Not surprisingly, Mr. Bird was also a strong advocate of a Federated West Indies. He actively participated in the many constitutional conferences on this development, beginning with the Conference on the Closer Association of the British West Indian Colonies in 1947.
In 1965, along with the late Prime Minister Barrow of Barbados and Premier Burnham of Guyana, he signed the CARIFTA Agreement – the precursor of the Treaty of Chaguaramas – the 25th Anniversary of which we are celebrating this year. Indeed the story is told that in 1973 during the only time when he was out of office, Vere Bird sent a delegation to Guyana with instructions to sign the Accord that would advance CARIFTA to CARICOM, on the grounds that they were representing the alternative government of Antigua and Barbuda.
VC Bird’s long and distinguished career records a list of impressive achievements. More significantly, it was a career of deep and committed struggle in the interests of the working people of Antigua and Barbuda and in the recognition that the struggle of the Caribbean community rested on the unity of its people. There are many of his and subsequent generations who have been accorded the title of Father of the Nation. With such impressive credentials, few will deny that Vere Cornwall Bird has first claim to the title of Patron of the Movement for Caribbean integration, development and progress.
Philip Manderson Sherlock was born in Portland, Jamaica on 25 February 1902. His formal schooling was at Calabar College where, immediately on graduation, he was appointed a Master at the school. This early indication of the superior intellect of the man we are honoring today became even more evident when, as an external student, he obtained two Degrees – a First-Class BA General and a First-Class BA Honors (English) – from the University of London. At the age of 30, he was appointed Head Master of Wolmer’s Boys School.
Numerous attempts have been made to divide the life of Philip Manderson Sherlock into discrete compartments representing stages of his evolution and growth. It would be far more reflective of the man himself, however, to regard him as the complete Caribbean father figure, an inspiration to generations who knew him and served with him, a man who, in respecting others was himself accorded immediate respect.
A brilliant yet a humble man, he understood people and, through that understanding, empowered them to be better citizens. When he left teaching in 1939 to become Secretary to the Institute of Jamaica and later Education Officer of Jamaica Welfare Limited, he was to demonstrate his incredible talent at making people, particularly at the grassroots level, recognise that they were also important citizens and that they too had a role to play in the shaping of their society. He actively developed and promoted among them the concept that, through community action, they could make a significant contribution to the process of national development.
Perhaps his genius for relating to people lay in his deep acceptance of culture and cultural values as being synonymous with creativity, on the one hand, and on the other, as an indispensable factor in assessing the state of development of a nation. It was a natural development for him to become a virtual patron of the arts. Few are aware or will recall that Philip Manderson Sherlock was the promoter of the popular comedy team of the 1930s – Slim and Slam – or that he was a renowned teller of Anancy stories. He was a poet of more than passing repute, a researcher into and a conservator of folk culture. In between all these activities, Philip Sherlock found the time to write several books ranging from readers for young children to historical works for university students; and of course, there was his biography of the great Jamaican leader Norman Washington Manley.
For his service to the people of Jamaica and to the wider Caribbean, he has been the recipient of numerous awards and honorary doctorates including a Knighthood from Her Majesty the Queen of England, Doctorates from the University of New Brunswick and Acadia University, the Order of Andres Bello from Venezuela, the Gold Musgrave Medal of the Institute of Jamaica; and to crown them all, the Order of Merit of Jamaica.
The dimension of Sir Philip’s life for which he is perhaps best known is his long-standing and intimate relationship with the University of the West Indies. He is due no small credit for the impact which the University has had on the development of the Caribbean Community during the 50 years of its existence.
In 1945, as a member of the Irvine Commission, he was a party not only to the recommendation for the establishment of the University College of the West Indies but was also largely responsible for setting up its Extra Mural Department which he regarded as a fundamental supporting plank to the University. By the time the University opened its doors to the first students in 1948, Sir Philip had already begun to work as the Region’s first Director of Extra Mural studies – a post he held until 1959.
In 1960, he was appointed Pro Vice-Chancellor and headed the new campus at St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago. During his five years of service as Pro Vice-Chancellor, he presided over the birth of the Faculty of Engineering, participated in the transformation of the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture into the Faculty of Agriculture, contributed to the opening of several Faculties at the Cave Hill campus in Barbados and gave his blessing to the start of evening classes in the Arts and Sciences at all three campuses.
His contribution to the University and to the community it served can best be appreciated when viewed from his own perspective. Philip Manderson Sherlock regarded the University “as a symbol of national unity and of a University of knowledge; a sign of national independence and of human independence”. In his view, “the University represents a special kind of partnership between many peoples. It represents a West Indian effort at collaboration that is in direct opposition to the fragmentation and divisions imposed on the Region by the Imperial rivalries of distant powers. It represents the cooperation of free peoples in a community whose history has been one of competition.”
This year, the University of the West Indies celebrates its 50th anniversary. Sir Philip was there from the inception setting standards by his personal example, guiding its progress and above all, selling his conviction of what the University should be both of itself, and to the people it serves. We congratulate him for a task executed with exceptional skill and grace. A fitting tribute to this lifetime of dedicated service has been the most recent award he has received – the Pelican Award – from those whose lives he touched in so many ways – the Guild of Graduates of the University of the West Indies.
Sir Philip continues to serve the Caribbean Community as an agitator for positive change. His recent co-authoring of a book , the History of the Jamaican people, and in particular, his commentaries as a columnist as well as his “change from within” programme have led to a recent description of him as a revolutionary – no mean accolade for a nonagenarian.
The statistical record of his achievements is impressive and reflects his complete mastery of the game of cricket. He was an accomplished batsman, a bowler of great versatility, a fieldsman to be feared and an ambitious captain. He is revered the world over for his sportsmanship. He has been described in the Guinness Cricket Encyclopedia as simply the greatest all-rounder ever to have played cricket. He has become the standard by which all other cricketers are and will be judged. Dr. Francisco Slinger (Sparrow) has eulogised him as the greatest cricketer on Earth or Mars. He is Garfield St. Auburn Sobers, born in Barbados 62 years ago and an icon for generations of Caribbean citizens.
For almost two decades, this gifted Barbadian epitomised what the game of cricket is all about. His was a household name wherever the game was played. To the thousands of purists and enthusiasts who thronged to see him or listened to his exploits on the radio, he was their example of what cricket really was and how it should be played. And to the very young West Indians, he served to expand their ambitious horizons by adding” I want to be a cricketer like Sobers” to their other career choices. What is amazing about this special person we are honouring today is that had he decided to concentrate on football or basketball or even golf, his would still have been a great success story.
Garfield Sobers’ first-class cricket career produced over 28,000 runs at an average of 55 runs per innings including 86 massive centuries. As a bowler of spin, swing and pace, he captured 1043 wickets at an average of just under 28 runs per wicket; and as a fieldsman, he returned 407 batsmen disconsolately to the pavilion. His Test career was no less brilliant. In all he played 93 tests scoring 8032 runs at an average of about 58 runs per innings making 26 centuries in the process. His first century was the record breaking 365 not out made in Kingston, Jamaica during the 1957/58 Pakistan tour. He also took 235 wickets at an average of 34 runs per wicket and 109 catches, most of them in the dangerous close to the wicket position.
Between his first major league cricket match and his last, including stints in Australia and England where he played League cricket, he wrote and rewrote the record books delighting all who saw him with his brilliance in all aspects of the game. His exploits on the field of play have been the subject of numerous books, articles and speeches over the years, all giving testimony to his greatness as a cricketer. Among the many great tributes was that given by the late Michael Manley, Prime Minister of Jamaica, who adjudged that there were only three cricketers in the history of the game who stood head and shoulders above all others – prototypical figures or ultimate symbols as he described them. There was W.G. Grace to the 1930s. Then Sir Donald Bradman to the late 1940s; and during the years from 1958 to 1976 there was Garfield St. Auburn Sobers. In this entire period of cricketing history, there were no other ultimate symbols, merely great players. It is unlikely that there would be another prototypical figure this side of the 21st century.
Garfield Sobers is the recipient of numerous awards and honors in tribute to his greatness as a cricketer. In 1975, he was knighted by Her Majesty the Queen of England for his contribution to the game – a signal honour shared by only a few illustrious recipients within this century. And in 1998 his native Barbados formally recognised him as a National Hero. To think of Sir Garfield simply as a cricketer or as a prototypical cricketing figure is to do great injustice to the wider impact which the man and his career had in breaking down the historical legacies of social and geographical insularity and ultimately on the development of the movement for Caribbean integration through cooperation. As we listened to and read of his exploits – and for those of us fortunate to have seen him in action – he was one of us .We identified with him and gloried in the fame and respect that being a West Indian brought us.
West Indians everywhere, here in the Caribbean and out there in the diaspora stood taller as a people, were themselves recognised as belonging to a significant regional space and derived a new sense of pride in being West Indian. The West Indies Cricket Team was no longer regarded by us as a group of persons from this Region to be lauded for their individual exploits and ignored when they failed. This highly significant transformation began under the Sobers dynasty. Since then the West Indies Cricket Team has become a symbol of Caribbean pride, respect and unity and today we are the grateful beneficiaries.
The Treaty of Chaguaramas, the 25th Anniversary of which we are celebrating specifically refers to functional cooperation as one of the fundamental bases upon which the Caribbean integration movement is to be fashioned and developed. Garfield Sobers, during his years of playing cricket and his 39 Tests as Captain of the West Indies Cricket Team created an important structural support for the edifice of Caribbean unity and has set an example of what people of the Region can achieve both in practical and psychological terms through working together. The Caribbean Community owes a great deal of its success, in the struggle for greater integration, to the achievements of the West Indies Cricket Team and a debt of gratitude to Garfield St. Auburn Sobers who was its Captain during this very significant period.
